"Shame-free" service conducted in Monterey on Del Monte Beach

MONTEREY >> When Pastor Brian Bajari arrives at Del Monte beach on Sunday, about a dozen people are already gathered around a picnic table. The men wear long beards and the women yesteryear's fashions, all are heavily bundled for the foggy Monterey shore.

Bajari finds a sheet to use as a beach blanket, a cover to spread around the pants, blouses and Bibles he's brought as Sunday offering. The men and women soon flock to the clothing, to the canned tuna and shrimp, and Joel Hunt can't help but joke,

"Like vultures around a carcass," he says, laughing.

As a way to start the service for the "Shame-Free Church," Bajari asks attendants to greet each other in the way they feel most comfortable — a fist bump, a handshake, even a hug.

That's what it means to be "lovingly present," as Bajari describes it. To be there for the homeless and the needy, not just by bringing them food and clothing, but by being kind and supportive.

"Behavioral psychologists say eight good positive touches a day can change the chemistry in our brain," Bajari said. "Physical touch is important because we're embodied human beings. Practice the art of giving somebody a positive-positive physical touch. There's a difference."

With the help of several volunteers and activists, Bajari has been hosting the Church on the Beach services, or, as he likes to call it, the "Shame-Free Church," for about five years. People should not be afraid they'll be kicked out — like it's happened at other churches — or that the attendants will offend with their presence. The weekly gathering brings from 20 to 50 people for a hot cup of coffee, food, clothing, and fist bumps.

This week, activist Michael Fechter has some good news for the crowd. The safe parking program will start in about a week, he said, meaning that any homeless person with a car would get a permit to safely park overnight.

The safe parking program will also assign a caseworker to help users find other assistance, such as getting back to school, Fechter said.

It's an unusual week in Monterey, Fechter remarks, as the events of Classic Car Week cast a light on the huge disparities that exist in the region. The night before, cars that went for thousands or millions of dollars were auctioned at the Russo and Steele tent on the Wharf, just a few yards from where the homeless services were now taking place.

"If they could just pay forward a small percent of that, don't you think they'd feel warm inside," said David Parker, a man who's been down on his luck for a long time.

"Let's make them our friends, whoever they are," he said. "They do provide jobs to other people. If you have to re-distribute wealth, you have to deal wealth."

It would be good if the city installed public latrines, so people would not have to relieve themselves in public, one of the men suggests. Bajari remembers the group needs to pray for Anita's rib, which was broken the day before when she was shoved during a robbery.

Bajari concludes the service with the story of the rich man and Lazarus, one of the parables in the Gospel of Luke. The rich man would not be consoled when he was in hell because he'd already received all his comforts on earth — just as poor people will receive their comforts in the kingdom of Abraham.

And even in darkness, there's hope, Bajari said, and this group of people had already demonstrated how much they could contribute by donating to Jeffrey, a Uganda orphan who faced tremendous obstacles.

"Out of the riches of this group, all of the sudden (Jeffrey) starts getting money to go to school," Bajari said. "He graduates from high school, and he's now on his way. What was dark and ugly, with so much despair for Jeffrey and lack of hope, love emerges to give hope to a hopeless person. We're the riches of the world. Jesus always spent time with people in the margins, and he believed people in the margins were the ones who practice love the most. Even though there's darkness for you, there's always hope."

After the service is over, some of the attendants make their way to the weekly luncheon served by volunteers of San Carlos Cathedral in the park across from the Naval Postgraduate School. Every week they serve about 60 people, said coordinator Pat Hommes, several of whom appear to be regulars.

"I like the food here, better than the Salvation Army," says one of the participants who declines to give her name. "I like my veggies and fruits, like what they serve."

Last year, a county homeless census reported Monterey had 586 homeless people, an increase of 116 people compared to 2011.

Monterey had the largest homeless count of any city in the county, with Salinas second with 532, Marina third with 419 and Seaside fourth with 195, the census said.

Ultimately, feeding the homeless is just a temporary solution for a more permanent problem, Fechter said.

"These are just band aids," he said. "You can't continue using a band aid on a wound that's mortal if we don't address it."

And the real solution is to find housing, a problem that only municipal, state and federal governments are able to address, Fechter said.

"There's plenty of food," he said. "What we really need is mental health counseling and housing."